Morning News: South America’s Newest Airline

LATAM Airlines Group, which controls LAN, TAM, and other airlines, will now use LATAM as its overarching brand, which the company says “represents the creation of the largest airline group in Latin America.” Combined, LATAM operates “more than 1,500 flights per day” and operates in “more than 140 passenger destinations in 24 countries,” the company says. A new logo for the brand is out now, but it could take years before LATAM jets get new liveries.

Airlines have made finding detailed information about change fees and other extra charges exceedingly difficult, a new report from the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation alleges. Senator Bill Nelson of Florida, the ranking Democrat on the committee, “said he intends to press his colleagues to act on the report's recommendations when the Senate begins its work on legislation reauthorizing the Federal Aviation Administration later this year,” Joan Lowy reports. (AP)

Chicago Midway International could get a $250 million upgrade if plans for major renovations are approved in 2016. (USA Today)

A new Delta safety video is, like the last one, sort of clever—but the clip also weirdly demonstrates how little space there is between seats in economy (at 0:22). (Delta)

A 128-day sailing aboard the Regent Seven Seas Navigator has mostly sold out, the line says, with fares starting at $54,999 per person. (USA Today)

Doug and Kris Tompkins, the outdoor equipment moguls, have created a series of nature preserves across South America, including “Parque Patagonia ... the couple’s showcase project in Chile, covering nearly 200,000 acres of the remote Aysén region.” In all, “ the couple [has] bought 2.2 million acres of land in Patagonia to protect it for future generations,” Jeremy Head reports. (The Telegraph)

Ace Hotels will open a property in New Orleans in 2016, the latest in a series of intriguing boutique hotels to pop up in the city, Juliana Shallcross reports. (Condé Nast Traveler)

On a road trip through North Dakota, “you might even find something romantic in the sight of a pair of bobbing pump jacks silhouetted against the setting sun,” Richard Rubin writes. “Admittedly, this is a strange form of ecotourism. Then again, people have been drawn to North Dakota for strange reasons at least since Lewis and Clark’s time.” (NYT)

After “the untimely demise” of a hitchhiking robot, the Aloft Cupertino released a statement attributed to its innovative Botlr, a robotic butler that’s undergoing testing at the property. The device will debut at the Aloft Miami South Beach “later this month,” but there seem to be no plans for it to visit Philadelphia.